Roof Replacement Timeline: What to Expect and When

When beginning a roof replacement at your residence, it’s important to figure out how long it will take. Unfortunately, the answer is more guesstimate than a hard number of days because it depends on several factors: the size of the roof, how complex the roof is and weather conditions during the project.

For 25 years, John Hogan Roofing has repaired and replaced roofs in the St. Petersburg and Clearwater areas. We know what it takes to replace your roof promptly while maintaining the high-quality workmanship for which we’re known and you expect. 

The roof of an average residence (3,000 square feet or less) can be replaced in a day. In rare cases, it could take three to five days. But typically, unless it’s a large home, a roof can be replaced fairly rapidly. 

What Determines the Length of a Roof Replacement Timeline?

Now that you know how long a roof replacement can take, you need to know how roof accessibility, complexity, weather and the time of year affect the timeline. These factors play a major role in the timeline for your roof replacement. 

The Complexity Of Your Roof

Now that you know how long a roof replacement can take, you need to know how roof accessibility, complexity, weather and the time of year affect the timeline. These factors play a major role in the timeline for your roof replacement. 

Safety precautions that the contractor must take also depend on the roof’s characteristics. The higher off the ground the installers are and the more steep the pitch, the more precautions they have to take. For their safety, they will move more slowly and more carefully, which leads to your roof replacement timeline being longer. The more complex the roof, the more time a contractor needs to install a quality roof. A simple roof may take a day, but a more complex roof may take three days to replace.

The Accessibility of Your Roof

The accessibility of your residential roof is simply the ability of your contractor to access your roof. The reason that access is important to your roof replacement is for tearing off the old roof, getting the torn-off materials into waste receptacles, and then getting the new materials back up to the roof for installation. 

Elements like landscaping and rows of bushes and trees, a fence or a lack of a paved surface near the roof access point make a roof difficult to access and could add to the roof replacement timeline for your project.

Weather During the Replacement Project

A roof should be replaced during the right weather conditions. It can’t be replaced in the rain, under freezing temperatures or when it’s too hot, due to hazardous conditions.

If your roof is replaced in any of these conditions, it will most likely not be properly installed. The weather affects both how long it takes to replace your roof and when you can replace it. If you see rain in the forecast when your roof replacement is scheduled, it should be postponed until your roof is dry enough to work on. 

If there is precipitation the day your roof is supposed to be replaced, the roofing company will reschedule for when the weather is dry. If it rains during the replacement, they’ll tarp your roof to protect your home, and they’ll pick up where they left off when it’s dry enough to be on it. Inclement weather stretches the replacement process out a little bit longer. 

Time of Year to Get Your Roof Replaced

Companies can be more productive during seasons when the sun is out longer. Most roofing contractors begin filling their schedules for roofing projects in March. 

In fall and winter, when days are shorter the amount of time roofers can be on a roof working is less. Roofers don’t usually work in the dark, so extra hours of sun allow installers to spend more time on your roof. So, a complex roof replacement could potentially be completed sooner during longer days of the year.

Quick Repairs Aren’t Always Best

Some companies take a job promising that they can complete it in a day. They’ll bring in a large team of installers on your roof and shingles fly everywhere. It’s chaotic. Often there isn’t enough time to do a proper cleanup, and the roof is probably not going to be installed correctly.

When it comes to the roofing world, it’s important to not choose speed over quality. A roof that is built too quickly is often a roof where proper steps could be skipped or quality work principles glossed over.  

An experienced, reliable roofer should be able to get the job done on time while still maintaining the expected quality you want in a roof replacement.

Discover Your Roof Replacement Timeline

Now that you have an idea of how long the roof replacement timeline could be for your home, call us to schedule a free estimate. For more than 25 years, John Hogan Roofing has given customers top-quality roofing services using premium materials. We pride ourselves on providing homeowners in Clearwater, St. Petersburg and surrounding communities with excellent residential roofing repair and replacement.